Welcome to Climate Changed, a series profiling members of the Tatler community, who are leaders in the world of sustainability, on how they’re tackling the threat of the climate crisis head-on. Here, Hong Kong plant-based chef Peggy Chan went to the grassroots of what’s wrong with our agricultural system and tells Tatler about her sustainable solutions
Sustainable initiatives need to be rooted in the ethos of a business—and not everyone is built to be a leader in this space, says Peggy Chan, an Asia’s Most Influential honouree, who is the founder and executive director of Zero Foodprint Asia, the regional arm of an initiative that addresses the climate crisis through regenerative farming and renewable food systems. “In order for a concept to last, you have to have the right conviction to stand for what you believe in and to keep it going and keep it running—even when things are hard.”
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Chan, a chef, is not only a trailblazer in sustainable dining—her brainchild Grassroots Pantry, the now-shuttered plant-based restaurant, opened in 2012 and paved the way for Hong Kong’s vegan and vegetarian food scene—she has also spent time addressing the inequities that were ingrained into our food chain and the agricultural sector. She found her passion for regenerative farming after she saw that farmers in Hong Kong and in the region had been forced to use unsustainable practices, such as the use of fertilisers and pesticides, given that they are subsidised by governments and provide a cheap fix for more crop yield. The practice, which operates through principles such as minimising soil disturbance and maintaining living plants and roots, may yield less crop, but produces tastier and more nutrient-rich produce than conventional forms of farming. “Why can’t we subsidise good farming and make healthy food more accessible and affordable for more people?”
The food and hospitality sector generated over HK$107 billion in revenue in 2022, says Chan—and a 1 per cent farm subsidy would result in HK$1 billion in annual subsidies. This would allow for the transition of “the next hundred million hectares of industrial farmland to regenerative, allowing thousands of farmers to make that shift for more sustainable farming possible”, she adds.
At Zero Foodprint Asia, Chan raises funds through the initiative’s 1% Pledge programme to address this subsidy void. Participating hospitality businesses either add 1 per cent on top of customers’ bills, or increase their prices by 1 per cent; this additional money goes towards a fund helping local and regional farmers opt for more sustainable options in their operations.